Chapter 657
Charlotte’s words rang out, fierce and full of confidence. Shirley just nodded, playing the obedient friend. Everyone knew Charlotte was the Gates family’s darling princess, and with Anthony on her side, no one even thought about crossing her. Honestly, it seemed like nobody ever managed to really mess with Charlotte.
Well… except maybe Anthony.
Shirley glanced up, catching a hint of red near Charlotte’s collarbone. She immediately looked away, pretending not to notice.
Not far from them, hidden in the corner, someone watched with cold, calculating eyes.
Olivia pulled out her phone and dialed, keeping her voice low. “Did you send what I asked for?”
“I couldn’t get Anthony’s direct contact, but I found one of his assistants,” the hacker replied, respectful and efficient. “Unless something went wrong, they’ve already seen the pictures.”
“Perfect.” Olivia hung up, a satisfied smile spreading across her face.
What she sent were photos from the training camp, every shot capturing Charlotte and Donald getting a little too close for comfort. Olivia refused to believe nothing was going on. Now, with Anthony seeing his precious girlfriend cozying up to another guy… who knew what he’d do? Maybe he’d just dump her then and there.
Without Anthony, Charlotte was nothing. Olivia couldn’t wait to watch her fall, to see her lose everything she ever had.
***
There were no classes that afternoon, so Charlotte headed home to Imperial Heights. After Helen’s homemade dessert, she grabbed her laptop and made herself comfortable in bed.
She powered up, typed in the IP address, and waited as lines of code flickered across the screen. When the mysterious site finally loaded, she scanned the page, her eyes locking on the words: A1 Research Institute.
Twenty years ago, the A1 Research Institute was the most advanced genetic virus research center in the world. They’d developed groundbreaking medicines and inhibitors, but the place was shrouded in mystery. No one knew where it was, who the members were, or why it disappeared. The scraps of information Charlotte had were the result of months of searching.
She clicked through the details, and suddenly, her breath caught. There, among the photos of the team, was a young woman-beautiful, bright-eyed.
Her mother.
Charlotte’s heart pounded. Now she was sure her mom had been part of the institute: She also knew stitute:
something terrible happened back then. The institute fell apart
overnight, and every member vanished without a trace. Her mom was one of those people
But what happened after she disappeared? How did she meet Steven? Why did they have a child together? Charlotte couldn’t believe someone as clueless as Steven could be her real dad, but the DNA tests didn’t lie.
She chewed her lip, hesitated, and then sent a new mission to the N Organization’s intelligence team.
Find the former members of Aet
Research Institute She needed answers-about the past, about why her mother died from heart and lung failure after giving birth.
Once she sent the request, Charlotte closed her laptop and burrowed into the
covers. Sleep came quickly, heavy and deep.
When she woke, something soft brushed her face, making her nose twitch.
“You’re up?”
Anthony was there, still in his suit, leaning over her with his hands on either side of her. His smile was warm, his eyes full of affection and something softer, just for her.
Charlotte hadn’t even told him she was coming home.